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The impacts of the Internet on library services and information usage since the advent of the World Wide Web have been significant, changing patron expectations for libraries, the ways in which libraries can reach patrons, the amount of information available, the job requirements of librarians, and the roles that libraries can play in their communities in times of need, among more prominent changes. This article will consider the coevolution of the Internet, public libraries, and public library research through the lens of the historical evolution of the methods of the Public Library Funding and Technology Access study. The three authors of this article bring a unique focus to the topic, having collectively worked at various points on most of the iterations of the study over its more than decade and a half of existence. (Contains 5 footnotes.)

This article describes a project at Baltimore County Public Library (BCPL) that aims to improve access for people who are blind or who have low vision. As public libraries move toward providing more digital-based resources, this is an opportunity to provide access for patrons who need resources in an alternative format. This project focused on website accessibility, digital databases, physical library accessibility, staff training, and marketing. The article describes the steps that BCPL will take to turn these research findings into practice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article looks at the legacy of library science scholar and outgoing "Library Quarterly" editor John Carlo Bertot, focusing on his work in the area of research aimed at having an impact on public policy in areas such as library funding. It discusses Bertot's studies of the extent of Internet connectivity and access at public libraries beginning in the 1990s. Topics include how research used to affect policy decisions differs from research with purely academic purposes.

The article discusses the impact of the Internet on library research, public libraries, and public library research. It examines the methods of the Public Library Funding and Technology Access Study. The authors assert that the Internet has allowed libraries to add capacity to library research. The article briefly discusses the technological environment prior to the Internet and studies sponsored by the U.S. National Commission on Libraries and Information Science (NCLIS) and the American Library Association (ALA).